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July 24, 2014

Quite Possibly The Best Flower Story Ever

I wanted this week to be filled with special flower features as we celebrate our 5th year of sharing flowers together on Botanical Brouhaha. I saved this story, which may be my favorite “flower story” to date, to share with you this week because it is truly special.

Laetitia Mayor, a member of the Botanical Brouhaha Expert Panel, wrote me earlier this month and shared this experience. I knew it was going to be good when she said: “I wish all weddings were so full of kindness, it was two weeks ago but I still feel the butterflies in my stomach when I think of it.”

Laetitia owns Floresie and she was asked to design flowers for the June 21st wedding of Vanessa and Vincent in the small village of Blanzy where she lives. Vincent dreamed of getting married in the small medieval church in Blanzy where he was baptized as a child. Over the years, the church had fallen into disrepair and had not held a wedding in 20 years. Laetitia quickly agreed to help and began dreaming up a natural garden look that would embrace “the work of time and Mother Nature” rather than attempting to hide the crumbling walls and broken windows..

To execute her design vision, Laetitia needed lots of garden flowers. While talking with Marguerite, “the most adorable inhabitant of Blanzy”, it was suggested that Laetitia ask the villagers to donate flowers from their personal gardens for the wedding. Laetitia loved the idea and word began circulating through the village.

The result: A 100% Blanzy wedding!

As the wedding day approached, villagers began showing up at Laetitia’s house with buckets of surprise blooms. Laetitia set about combining the flowers into arrangements, personal flowers and pew ends.

On the day of the wedding, the flowers were transported the short distance to the church in a wheelbarrow…no need for a car.

The final design, the product of an entire village working together for the love of a young couple, would make any floral designer “feel the butterflies” that Laetitia described.

Laetitia’s last words gave a chill: “I gathered my equipment in my little red wheelbarrow and I left the church doors open, ready to welcome the guests. On the way home, I turned. Small smile.”